IN advance of presenting the colonial history of the county, it is the purpose of this chapter to give in brief the topography of Rutland county, its geological formation, its rivers, lakes, mountains, mineral resources and general natural characteristics, with sketches of interesting phenomena.

      The face of the county is generally uneven and the eastern portion mountainous. The range of the Green Mountains, which give name to Vermont, extends through the county from south to north and rises in several places to a height exceeding four thousand feet above the level of the sea; but they are not generally precipitous, and are most of them covered with timber to their summits. The loftiest of these summits are Killington, Shrewsbury and Pico. Among these mountains arise a number of streams which follow their declivities into the Connecticut River on the east, or Lake Champlain on the west. The general surface of the county is not unlike that of the main portion of western Vermont, while its natural capacities and resources far excel those of many other sections. The first range of townships bordering upon Lake Champlain and the State of New York is pleasantly diversified with ridges and valleys, having few elevations of considerable height worthy of notice. These isolated hills rise usually in spherical form, are easily ascended and from their summits afford fine views of the surrounding country; the cultivated fields, the flocks and herds, the farm houses, orchards and groves; the dark forests rising upon, the mountain side and the mountains themselves, the serrated peaks, all combine to form a picture not easily copied by human artist.

      Beyond the first range of townships the country becomes more uneven and broken, yet it is valuable either for tillage or pasture, until the base of the Green Mountains is reached, which cover the extreme eastern part of the county and ascend to nearly the highest point of land in the State. Between the spurs of the mountains there are valuable tracts of land for timber and pasturage; far more valuable indeed for the dairy and the raising of neat stock than they have generally been reputed. As the ascent to the mountains begins, the timber begins to gradually diminish in height, and finally an altitude is reached where vegetable life does not receive sufficient heat and moisture to support it, except here and there a few starved and stunted lichens that find a dreary abode in some niche or crevice in the rocks.

      When this section was first visited by the Europeans, it was covered by one unbroken forest. The lakes and rivers were shaded by a growth of pine and elm, while the uplands were heavily timbered with maple, beech, birch and spruce; these largely constitute the timber of today, except the pine, which is rare, even on the summits of the mountains, which were covered with a perpetual verdure of hardy evergreens. In those early days the forests and margins of the lakes and streams were well stored with deer, bears, wolves, otter, beaver and a variety of other animals, which undoubtedly made this region the favorable hunting ground of the natives; but the pursuit of the chase by successive generations has left the woodlands with but a limited quantity of game.

      The geological formations as they exist in the county are peculiar and in some regards distinct from those of other sections. To give a full account of their characteristics would require far more elaboration of detail than can be compressed into a single chapter. The county excels many others in the agricultural capabilities of its soil, through the existence of lime in almost all her rocks in such a state that natural processes bring it out as needed for vegetation This is a characteristic which Providence has hidden in the earth and provided for its elimination, creating a great source of wealth to our agricultural population. Most of the valuable rocks and minerals run lengthwise across the country, and are thus made accessible to most of the inhabitants. This is the case with the marbles, the slates and the iron, and others of less value. The main mineral resources seem inexhaustible in quantity and are of such kinds as will be in perpetual and increasing demand, as the population of the county increases. Coming generations will, therefore, excel the present in the development of local mineral resources, and constant explorations bring to light new facts of much scientific interest. The elucidation of science up to this period leaves us the right to presume upon a future general increase of knowledge in the geology of Rutland county. For our present purpose, only the main features of this topic can be noted.

      Perhaps to the general reader the terraces, or "sea beaches" as they are often called by the scientific geologist, present a subject of the greatest interest. They are objects of common observation in Rutland county, and remarkable for their number, form and symmetry. Though valleys are so common in Vermont, the people do not enquire in reference to their formation, nor why their sides are lined with the terraces; but they make practical use of these eligible situations furnished by nature, as sites for pleasure grounds, dwellings, villages and cemeteries. Many of our towns are chiefly indebted to these terraces for their beauty. In Rutland county, Pawlet, Poultney, Brandon and Pittsford, are located along prominent rivers, and the beauty and attractiveness of their dwellings and public grounds arise substantially from their terraced sites. On Poultney River there are fine terraces for nearly five miles north of its junction with Lake Champlain at Whitehall. There are two terraces also on the Vermont side in West Haven; these are composed of clay of blue and reddish material and extend some eighteen feet in height above the river in terrace form. In the northern part of Fair Haven there is a terrace one hundred feet high, on the east side of the river. It is at a point where the river changed its course in 1783. At the village of Poultney there is a wide plain which is bounded by a terrace. Upon Lewis Brook in the north part of the town is a terrace more prominent than any other on the river. Hubbardton River has three terraces upon its banks in the town of West Haven; and there is a distinct basin of terraces on Castleton River, embracing the villages of Castleton and Castleton Corners. At these villages the terraces are broader than those of any other section, thus forming the village sites. Occasionally a third terrace is seen upon Castleton River before reaching West Rutland, where the river has cut through the Taconic range of mountains. In West Rutland, near the celebrated marble quarries, this stream runs through a low meadow; there are no other terraces upon it.

      Otter Creek rises in Dorset, flows through Rutland and Addison counties, and discharges its waters into Lake Champlain at North Ferrisburgh. The lower part of its course is over Champlain clays, where the descent of its bed is slight, except an occasional fall over ledges of rocks. The upper part of its course is through an undulating country, near the western limit of the quartz formation and over calcareous rocks, except where it crosses a. range of quartz rock in Rutland.

      In the northeast part of Danby are well-developed terraces. Just above South Wallingford ledges of rocks form the banks of the creek, which may be, considered the boundary between two basins of terraces. These terraces upon both sides of the creek extend from Wallingford to Clarendon village. Between East Wallingford and Cuttingsville are large terraces of sand and gravel. At Cuttingsville Mill River cuts through a high ridge of rocks, forming a deep gorge in plain sight of the Rutland railroad. In the town of Rutland are terraces of more than a mile in width, which are traversed by two railroads. The railroad in Rutland village is situated upon a terrace. Upon both sides of East Creek near the depot may be seen two terraces which extend to the northeast corner of the township. Very fine terraces are found in Mendon, but not equal to those in Chittenden and Pittsford. On Furnace Brook, in Pittsford, they are well developed; here is also a curious tower of limestone. About two miles north of Pittsford there is a fine basin of terraces; the scenery in the vicinity is quite picturesque. A very distinct beach continues to Brandon, upon which the village is situated; this extended terrace, like almost everything in Brandon, is well formed and attractive to the eye. The course of the Otter Creek from this point to Lake Champlain is serpentine, a feature due to the loamy character of the meadow lands through which it flows.

      The location of these various terraces have been thus given because they are constantly attracting more attention, not only from the tourist, but the inhabitant who has heretofore little understood their locations. It may be added that throughout the State along the principal rivers are numerous terraces, presenting a feature of deep interest.

      Marine fossils have been found at Rutland on the Otter Creek five hundred feet above the ocean, and on Castleton Rivet four hundred and seventy-five feet; at West Haven, near Whitehall, N. Y., at one hundred feet. It is a remarkable fact that in the building of the Rutland railroad in 1848, one of the most interesting fossils ever found in New England was brought to light in the town of Mount Holly, comprising the remains of an elephant. The railroad crosses the mountain at this point, at an elevation of one thousand four hundred and fifteen feet above the level of the ocean, and the fossilized bones of the elephant were found at that height, in a peat bed east of what is now called the Summit Station. The basin id which the peat is located appears to have been originally filled with water. A large proportion of the material which formed the lower part of the peat consisted of billets of wood about eighteen inches long, which had been cut off at both ends, drawn into the water and divested of the bark. The peat was fifteen feet deep before the excavation was made for the railroad. In making this excavation the workmen found at the bottom of the bed, resting upon the gravel which separated the peat from the rock below, a huge tooth. The depth of the peat at this point was eleven feet. Soon afterward one of the tusks was found about eighty feet from the location of the tooth. Subsequently the other tusk and several of the bones of the animal were found near the same place. Professor AGASSIZ, who visited the spot, pronounced them to be the bones of an extinct race of elephant. They were presented to the Museum of Natural History of the University of Vermont, at Burlington, for preservation and for an illustration of the fossil geology of the State. The grinder tooth weighed eight pounds, and the length of its grinding surface was about eight inches. The tusks were somewhat decayed and one was badly broken. The most perfect tusk measures about eighty inches in length and its greatest circumference was twelve inches

      Other fossils have been discovered in the county, markedly in a cave in Chittenden, where the bones of small animals have been found, such as are now extinct.

      Unstratified rocks occur at Mount Holly fourteen hundred feet above the ocean, or thirteen hundred feet above Lake Champlain, and there are other similar ones on Danby Mountain. At the latter point marble quarries are opened at various heights, one as high as fifteen hundred feet above the valley. Hematite, manganese, beds of ocher and pipe clay exist in several sections at Brandon, Chittenden and Wallingford. Brown iron ore, which is important in making steel, is found in Brandon, Chittenden, Pittsford, Tinmouth and Wallingford. Yellow ocher is found in immense quantities in Brandon.

      Among the novel geological products is one kind of asbestos, or, as it is sometimes called, "mountain leather." It occurs in paper-like masses, lying between different portions of a rock, and the fibers are so small and closely interlaced that the whole bears the appearance of leather. Another name given to what is essentially the same thing is mountain or rock cork, from the fact that its specific gravity is so light that it will float in water.

      Kaolin, or porcelain clay, is found in several places in the county. Trappean rocks are found nowhere in Vermont except in the form of dikes in the towns of Clarendon and Mount Holly. The rock appears to be a greenstone, constituting one of those freaks of nature found in all hilly and mountainous country. The dikes in this county are exceedingly numerous and vary much in their composition and character. Some of them consist of well-characterized greenstone; others consist almost entirely of white or yellowish feldspar. The greenstone, or trap dikes, are generally straight and of uniform width, and. may be frequently traced through a considerable distance. The other class of dikes are often crooked in character. In West Rutland is a dike running nearly east and west, and another of the same character in Pittsford. There are others in Danby and Wallingford; the latter is the widest greenstone in Vermont. There are a few more important dikes, of which detailed description would be too lengthy for these pages.

      Heretofore in this chapter an effort has been made to avoid technical and scientific expressions. In giving information, however, of the useful and valuable minerals found in the several towns, it becomes necessary in some instances to use scientific and unfamiliar names. The following list gives the localities of the minerals of value in Rutland county: 

      This list comprises the more valuable and commercial minerals. Galena and quartz crystals have, however, been found in Mount Tabor and calcite at West Rutland and Danby. Galena is found in several towns of the county. A portion of the lead reduced from this ore gives a small quantity of silver. Professor Charles B. Adams said of a quantity found at Brandon, which he analyzed: "It was equal to one-fifth of one percentum, which is four pounds of silver to the ton of metal. This quantity will be well worth working, provided the lead is abundant: Probably one pound of silver in a ton of lead would more than repay the cost of extraction, as lead yielding only four ounces to the ton is said to be profitably cupelled in Great Britain."

      Quick lime, a valuable product, is scattered with beneficent profusion throughout. the county, there being scarcely a town in which it is not found, either in a state of comparative purity or in combination with other rocks. Except upon rich cultivated meadows no portion of the State is so fertile as that upon the limestone of this section. Perpetual kilns are erected, and the business of manufacture is extensively carried on during all seasons of the year. The purest limestone is selected and the product of the kilns is as white as chalk. Most of the perpetual kilns are built contiguous to railroads, and thus the expense incident to transportation by team is avoided. At Brandon about 25,000 barrels of lime are obtained per annum by one company. Its purity renders it very valuable for bleaching and other similar purposes to which it is applied.

      The roofing slate of Vermont exists in three distinct divisions, the largest and most valuable being confined to Rutland county. The western division extends through the towns of Castleton, Fair Haven, Poultney, Wells and Pawlet, and passes into the State of New York at Granville. The color resembles that of Wales, being of a dark purple with occasional layers of green intermixed. There are also strata in which pea green is the prevailing color, from which large quantities of that shade are obtained. Slate of a red color is also found. It now forms one of the leading industries of the county and proves remunerative to those who have embarked in the enterprise of working the quarries. In 1845 Hon. Alanson ALLEN, of Fair Haven, began the working of slate, and for several years limited his business exclusively to manufacturing school slates, turning out one hundred per day. In 1847 he began the manufacture of roofing slate. In 1850 a new vigor was given to the slate business. Intelligent Welshmen, accustomed to working slate, emigrated to Fair Haven, Castleton and Poultney, made purchases of slate lands and opened quarries, and such was the character of the slate produced that the prejudice which had existed in various localities against the Vermont product disappeared. Improved machinery was introduced and the price of roofing slate in the market was so materially reduced as to seriously affect those who did not rely upon the cheap labor of Europe. At the present time the production per annum exceeds three times the whole amount of slate imported from all foreign countries. Sawing and planing slate for black boards, billiard tables and tile have also been introduced. In 1855 the process of enameling slate was begun and now mantelpieces, bracket shelves, tables and other articles are largely manufactured. They excel in beauty or finish the finest marbles and sell at about one fourth the price of the marble which they quite faithfully represent. A description of the different slate industries will be given elsewhere.

      Kaolin, or porcelain clay, commonly known as "pipe clay," "paper clay" and "putty," is found in several places, associated with ochers of iron and manganese. Unlike most clays, it is of snowy whiteness, slightly coherent and does not change color upon being burned; it is extensively used in the manufacture of stone ware, fire-bricks, white earthen ware, paper, vulcanized India rubber, porcelain and other like articles. The largest and best deposit in this county is at Brandon, where fire-bricks are made, and large quantities of it are sold under the name of paper clay and used in paper making. The bed at Brandon has the greatest thickness of any in the State. It is also found in small quantities in Chittenden and Wallingford. Clay for bricks is found in nearly every town of the county.

      Pigments of various kinds are found in different parts of the county, and in such quantity as to be profitably worked. Paints have been extensively manufactured in Brandon, and in this town there is found a greater variety of materials suitable for pigments than in any other in the State; possibly greater than in any other in blew England. The several colors of paints produced are yellow, brown, red, roofing paint, and raw and burnt umber. The Brandon paints have been thoroughly tested and approved and they are recognized as among the best in the market. There are other points where manganese is found in isolated beds, independent of iron ore. Ocher beds often exist where workable ore is not found. Manganese is found in Brandon, Chittenden, Pittsford and Wallingford, and probably at other places.

      The rocks of Rutland county, whose ages are determined by their imbedded fossils, are too old to contain workable beds of coal; but persons unacquainted with geology, and perhaps regarding the occurrence of coal as accidental and governed by no fixed laws, have vainly sought for it among the Silurian rocks of the Otter Creek valley, confiding more in the evidence upon the glazed surface of the black slate than in well settled facts of science. Brown coal, composed of carbonaceous matter capable of sustaining combustion and emitting heat, is sometimes found. At Brandon it has been discovered in a bed having an area of twenty-five feet square, which has been penetrated to the depth of eighty feet perpendicularly and the coal removed and used as fuel in driving an engine.

      Many of the iron ores are found in this county, of which the hematite is the most abundant and valuable for smelting. We cannot attempt more than a brief description of the principal beds and veins in the county. At South Wallingford iron ore is found, and has been worked, but the beds are now abandoned. In Tinmouth the Chipman Bed was successfully worked more than thirty years, but this is also now abandoned. Another bed known as the Phillip Iron Mine, was opened and worked fifty years ago, and was not abandoned until a few years since. It is favorably situated for working and the ore obtained of good quality, but the ore has probably been mostly removed. In Pittsford and Chittenden beds of ore are still worked and considerable commercial value is put upon them. Iron ore was first discovered in Brandon in 1810, and soon afterward a forge was built and bar iron of a superior quality was manufactured for several years. In 1820 a furnace was built for reducing the ore, which met with success; it is to this furnace that Brandon is indebted for an impetus then given to its business growth and prosperity, the influence of which is still felt. The Blake Ore Bed, near Forestdale, was successfully worked for many years, but is not now in operation. To describe minutely the numerous beds of bog ore found would be a difficult task, for they exist in every town, but not one would, as far as known, produce iron enough to pay the expense, nor of a quality valuable for smelting.

      At Cuttingsville is found a deposit of copperas ore, a name given to pyrites of iron and copperas. The beds have been worked, but were abandoned many years ago, although favorably situated, being upon a hillside and within a few rods of the railroad. Veins of tin exist in this belt where it has been explored at sufficient depth. No silver has been found. in the county, except as before stated, although fabulous stories have been told of its existence and some explorations have been made in past years in Wallingford. Native gold has been found in small quantities in the beds or on the beaches of some of the smaller streams.

      No county of the same extent in Vermont equals Rutland in the amount of its agricultural productions. The soils, although varying materially in their construction and composition, are invariably such as are favorable to the growth of grass, and the rocky hillsides, which would fail to remunerate those who would attempt their cultivation, afford excellent pasturage, and, unlike some others, the very hill tops as well as the valleys beneath, have in midsummer a greenness which makes the name vert mont appropriate.

      It has been our intention to briefly present the geological features of the county in such a manner as to be understood by the unscientific reader, and hence we have avoided as far as possible all technical terms. It will have been seen that this subject is one of interest and importance in this locality, and the same may be said of the mineralogy of the county. Therein lies largely the source of future wealth and prosperity, and, therefore, if for no other reason, it is a subject to be studied by all into whose hands this work shall fall.

"History of Rutland County Vermont with Illustrations & 
Biographical Sketches of Some of Its Prominent Men & Pioneers"
Edited by H. Y. Smith & W. S. Rann, Syracuse, N. Y.
D. Mason & Co., Publishers  1886
History of Rutland County
Chapter II.
(pages  24-33)

Transcribed by Karima, 2002